The Year's Best Haircuts—From Hair Master Sam McKnight to You

No matter what your length is, Sam McKnight says, the newest style now is a bit mussed up. "As a whole, there's a touchability to these looks," he says. "And different tones in any hair color, rather than one flat color, soften the style." With long hair, it's all about putting in more chunky layers for unevenness, then adding texture. Start with mousse (like Oribe Surfcomber Tousled Texture Mousse, $37, barneys.com), then "wind hair down the barrel of a curling iron in random sections, leaving the ends free and uncurled."

You're probably wondering: Can I pull this off? Well, according to McKnight, "before you begin to think about face shape or texture, it's about your attitude." That's why boyish cuts are so damned sexy—they exude confidence. Next most important is the angle of your cut. "The bangs were high and square, and I chopped them to be more piecey." Tell your stylist to do the same! To rough it up, blow-dry, then add a dry shampoo like Pantene Pro V Root Reboot Dry Shampoo, $7, walgreens.com.

Did we mention it's OK to be a commitmentphobe? "Short hair grows out quickly, so you can con??stantly play around and change up your cut," says McKnight. So how do you avoid that bulbous mom crop? Ask for a razor cut. "If it's cut blunt, it will fall into [a bowl], but if it's razored, you can mold it into any shape with hair wax." (A good one: Pantene Pro V Stylers Texturizing Sculpting Wax, $6, walgreens.com.) If you've got curly hair, get a similar shape to your cut by "buzzing an area underneath and styling the curls over your eyes."

Don't you love a look that embraces imperfection? (McKnight calls it organized chaos.) "I did zigzag bangs here, then ruffled the hair up so it was uneven and angular," he says. "It was very short—the layers are probably an inch all over. But even that length allows you to move it around." To play up a very short cut, add a salt spray like Wella Professionals Ocean Spritz Beach Texture Hairspray, $16, ulta.com, and work hair into chunky sections with your fingers. We predict these zigzag bangs are going to be popping up on hair of all lengths.